The Role of Nature and Nurture for Individual Differences in Primary Emotional Systems: Evidence from a Twin Study

PLoS One. 2016 Mar 21;11(3):e0151405. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0151405. eCollection 2016.

Abstract

The present study investigated for the first time the relative importance of genetics and environment on individual differences in primary emotionality as measured with the Affective Neuroscience Personality Scales (ANPS) by means of a twin-sibling study design. In N = 795 participants (n = 303 monozygotic twins, n = 172 dizygotic twins and n = 267 non-twin full siblings), moderate to strong influences of genetics on individual differences in these emotional systems are observed. Lowest heritability estimates are presented for the SEEKING system (33%) and highest for the PLAY system (69%). Further, multivariate genetic modeling was applied to the data showing that associations among the six ANPS scales were influences by both, a genetic as well as an environmental overlap between them. In sum, the study underlines the usefulness of the ANPS for biologically oriented personality psychology research.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
  • Twin Study

MeSH terms

  • Adult
  • Demography
  • Emotions*
  • Environment*
  • Female
  • Humans
  • Individuality*
  • Male
  • Models, Genetic
  • Multivariate Analysis
  • Personality
  • Personality Assessment
  • Phenotype
  • Siblings
  • Twins, Dizygotic / genetics*
  • Twins, Monozygotic / genetics*

Grants and funding

CM is funded by a Heisenberg grant awarded to him by the German Research Foundation (DFG, MO 2363/3-1). Moreover, the present study is funded by the German Research Foundation (DFG, MO 2363/2-1), www.dfg.de.